Human C
by thegirlofthoughts
Summary: Short. That only made him stronger. Emotional. That only kept him in touch with himself and others. Ugly. That only made people focus on what's on the inside. Different. That only meant he was a special, unique individual who was true to himself. Never going to get a girlfriend. That only meant he took love more seriously. Depressed. Chase wasn't going to let that stop him.
1. Prologue: The One I Never Knew pt 1

**Hello again. Rapid fire! So many stories in a row... This is a very emotional story. It deals with depression, but it doesn't have anything too bad, I believe. When I wrote this a while ago, I think I was feeling very understanding of Chase and his whole situation and felt like he should have a friend/girlfriend who understood him and loved him as well.**

 **So, this is from Chase's pov. The poem is my original one called "Smile." I'm pairing Chase with my OC Clara. The title came from the fact that some people refer to Chase as Subject C, so I thought that I should label a human that. I dunno, man.**

 **This is probably set in Season Three, after Owen and before the Bionic Academy. I think that's about it. Bya!**

Poetry had never been my thing.

So, when Bree dragged the family to a poetry reading with her new boyfriend, Keenan, I was not overjoyed. Being a genius, I didn't see how putting your emotions into lines and stanzas was logical. Being a stereotypical guy, I didn't see how some people had so many emotions and could express them so deeply. Well, sometimes I could, but some of the stuff people wrote poetry about was ridiculous.

I pretty much tuned the people out, which I could do with my bionic senses. But when I heard the first line of some girl's poem, I immediately zoned back in.

" _Depression hurts,_

 _It hurts every single part of you_

 _Mentally, physically, emotionally, and spiritually_

 _You just want the pain to go away_

 _So, smile even if it hurts_ "

She seemed about to say more, but people started booing and throwing things at her. "That didn't even rhyme!" one guys shouted. I wanted to punch him.

The girl stepped down from the small stage, blushing and looking extremely flustered. She sat alone at a nearby table. Surprisingly, she didn't look like she was going to cry or anything. If anything, she looked determined and strong. I had to admire that.

I looked around at my family. They were too occupied by the next poet to pay any attention to me. So, I slipped from our table over to the girl's. She looked up at me, confused. "Who are you? If you're here to pretend like you're my friend and then hurt me just so you can make fun of me later, don't. I've already fallen for that one."

I looked at her, shocked. Why in the world would do something so cruel? "No, that's not why I came over here," I finally managed. "At all."

Her expression softened a little. "I'm not sure whether or not to get my hopes up. You seem like a nice guy, but it's always the nice guys who get to me." I could definitely sense the wistfulness behind her words.

"Well, just give me a chance. I'll prove to you that I'm not going to hurt you. And I promise that if I do, you can slap me right here in the face."

The girl laughed, and it sounded like nothing I had ever heard before. It was indescribable, the perfect laugh. "I'll hold you to that," she said, grinning. "So, why'd you come over here?"

"I just wanted to tell you that I really liked your poem."

Her surprise was evident. "Really? Sorry to tell you the rest of the world seems to disagree on that matter."

I shrugged. "The rest of the world and I haven't always seen eye to eye. It wouldn't be the first time we agreed to disagree."

"Well, thank you. I'm flattered and very surprised. No one has ever liked my poetry before. They all think it's too dark and sad or too weird because a lot of it is free verse. So, why do _you_ like it?"

I shrugged again. "I don't know. I only heard the first line. But it just…sounded like me."

She quirked an eyebrow. "You don't look very depressed to me."

My smile lost its humor. "You'd be surprised."

Yes, it's true. The big, ugly truth was that I was depressed. I could never describe it accurately, even with all the adjectives in the world in my bionic brain. It was just depression, plain and simple. Nobody knew about it, and I really didn't plan on telling them any time soon.

"There's more to it, if you want to hear it," the girl told me, her black hair falling in front of her eyes. Even though it was dimly-lit in the café, her hair was still darker than everything else around it.

"Sure." So, I was right; there was more than just one stanza to the poem.

Her grin could have lit up Las Vegas. "Awesome! So, it's called 'Smile.' It's about someone getting over their depression and encouraging others to do so as well." She read the poem, all four stanzas of it.

It was amazing how sad and inspiring it was at the same time. We talked some more, but it wasn't until we got around to our personal information that I was really surprised.

"Wait a second. You go to Mission Creek High too?" I asked.

"Yeah, I'm Clara Dale. We have geometry together. You never talk to me though. It took me a while to recognize you."

"Oh. Oh yeah." I remembered Clara now. She was probably the second smartest in that class, not nearly as intelligent as me of course. She usually kept to herself and didn't announce to the class what she made on this or that, even though we all knew she did really well. But I thought she was a brunette. "Didn't you have brown hair?"

"Yeah, it got darker all of sudden. I guess it matches my mood." She tugged at a loose strand.

Clara had always struck me as introverted and mysterious. I could tell she had a lot of secrets, but I never asked or talked to her. She was one of those people who you saw one moment and as soon as your attention was focused on something else, you forgot all about her. As far as I knew, she didn't have any close friends.

She always had a black and red notebook that she was constantly writing in. No one knew what she wrote in there, and no one really cared. Now that I recognized her, I recognized her notebook, which was what she read her poem to me from. Well, now I knew what she was often scribbling in there.

"So, why are you depressed?" she asked.

I shifted uncomfortably. "I don't…I don't really want to talk about it."

"You don't have to," she told me hurriedly. "I get it. It's not easy to talk about things or people that hurt you. I didn't mean to pry."

"It's okay," I mumbled. I looked up and saw people starting to leave. "I'd better go. You know, my family and all."

Clara smiled at my awkwardness. "I'm not holding you back." She stood and left.

As I was leaving as well, I promised to myself that I wouldn't forget her and her poetry. I would pay attention to her and see who Clara Dale really was.


	2. Prologue pt 2

**Wow. So many things going through my head right now...**

 **I'm sorry. I have so many things to apologize for, so many inconveniences, so many mistakes. First of all, I didn't look at my document. I didn't realize that I wasn't finished. This is still the prologue (also, I forgot to mention that this is, in fact, a prologue and very long), just a longer part two. Also, I didn't even put the chapter/prologue title in the actual writing (I should probably start doing that to avoid further confusion); I'll put it here. I could have split this into three short parts, but I felt that I should make up for my mistakes through story.**

 **Anyway, I should have also put a trigger warning. It does speak about depression, angst, etc. Especially this chapter. This chapter is where you get to know a lot more about the two main characters and their troubles. I should have also mentioned that this is a series of one-shots and arcs. And an OOC warning. I'm so forgetful...**

 **And if you haven't heard, the replies to reviews are at the end. Oh, and there's more of that poem in this. The last stanza, to be exact. It's a bit more... inspiring. And I think I'll start putting in line breaks before/after the A/N and the actual story just to make it look neater and avoid more confusion.**

 **I think that's it. Probably forgot something else. Whatever. Bye.**

* * *

The One I Never Knew pt. 2

That Monday was one of the worst.

Trent had apparently spent the whole weekend playing video games and forgot to beat anyone up, so he had to "make up for it." And guess who got that little gift? Me, of course.

As I stumbled out of the front doors of the school with a broken nose, black eye, split lip, and twisted leg, a movement caught my eye. I turned and saw Clara looking at me with fear and horror. "Chase…" she whispered, reaching to touch my face but hesitating. "Come here." She pulled me gently around the building.

We got to the nurse's office, where she somehow picked the lock. She led me inside and sat me down. Rummaging around in some drawers, she searched for something. "Ah-hah. Found it." In her hands were some cotton balls, a bottle of something, and some long white bandages.

She poured some of the liquid in the bottle on the cotton balls and held it close to my face. "This is going to sting, so brace yourself." She dabbed the fiber on my eye first, and I hissed with pain.

"That does a lot more than sting," I said.

"Stop complaining. Just be glad it was me who found you and not one of your siblings."

I winced both at the pain and the thought of explaining all this to Adam or Bree or Leo. Clara put another cotton ball on my lip, and I gritted my teeth. She gently felt my nose and leg. "Good thing Trent didn't break anything. You'll just have to deal with this and find some way to explain it to your family."

I shrugged. "I fell off my bike, and it landed on me."

"They'd really believe that?"

"They'd believe anything that makes me sound weak and more useless than I actually am." I couldn't keep the bitterness out of my voice.

"Sounds like my family." Her voice was so quiet I could have imagined what she just said. She started wrapping the bandages around my leg.

"Seriously? You're family bullies you and ignores you and makes fun of you and doesn't give you the credit you deserve?" I asked sarcastically.

"Yes," she whispered. Her tone was completely serious.

"Wow. I thought I was the only one like that."

"You're never the only one." She tightened the bandage, and I had to take a second to recover. "I think that about does it. Just try not to overuse that leg. I'd say a little rest and staying at least a mile away from Trent should do."

"Thank you, Dr. Dale," I told her jokingly. She smiled and got up to get some tissues for my nose. "So, how'd you know it was Trent?"

"Who else would it be?" she asked resentfully.

"Has Trent been giving you a hard time too?"

She had been putting stuff back in the drawers, but at my words, she stopped. "He hasn't touched me yet because even he won't hit a girl. But he insults me. Every day, he comes up with ways to verbally torture me. And I can do nothing about it."

I smiled grimly. "Sounds familiar."

She sighed and turned back toward me. "I have to go, Chase. I'm sure you do too. Your family will probably worry. Especially since you have training tonight."

My jaw literally dropped open. "How…how did you know…?"

Her smile was without humor. "You'd be surprised what I know about you, Chase Davenport."

And she was gone before I could say another word.

* * *

Somehow, Clara had convinced me to become my partner in our geometry project. Somehow, Clara had convinced me to invite her to my house so we could study and work on the project together. Somehow, Clara had convinced me to go up on the roof to work.

I hadn't really gone up on the roof often. I usually spent most of my time in the living room or the lab. I had never been an outdoors person.

But now that I was there, I knew why she liked roofs so much, especially in the evening. It was quiet and semi-dark, and there was a gentle breeze blowing. It wasn't strong enough to carry our papers away, but it was just enough to make the humid summer night seem cool and relaxing. Being out of earshot of my siblings was just a bonus.

We worked as the sun set. We talked and laughed and just had a good time. Clara was probably the first real friend outside my family I had made.

When we heard Adam singing a random song at the top of his lungs even from up here, we laughed harder than ever before. Then, we got into the subject of family.

"Your brothers are really crazy, aren't they?" she asked.

"Yeah, like you wouldn't believe. So, do you have any brothers?"

"One. He's the middle child. I'm the youngest. There's Amy, Ben, and me, always in that order. The others are always treating me like the youngest, even though I'm smarter than both of them combined. Amy's athletic but an airhead. Ben is really handsome and popular but doesn't really have much depth to his character. It seems like we all got one part of the three and none of the others. Amy got the sports, Ben got the popularity, and I got the intelligence."

I just shook my head, incredulous. "Story of my life."

Her brow furrowed. "No, it's not. You're different. You've got all three, even if you don't know it yet."

"It doesn't feel like it."

"That's just because you don't want to feel like it. You could be athletic _and_ popular _and_ smart. You just have to stop limiting yourself to one."

"What about you then?"

"I'm not like you, Chase. I know what you are. You can change; you can adapt. I'm just normal. I'm stuck like this. I don't get to train all the time and go on life-saving missions. I get to study and do my homework and watch my brother go on a date with his twentieth girlfriend to my sister's softball game."

I narrowed my eyes at her. "Clara, the only difference between us is a single chip. Take that away, and we're both the same person. If I can change, you can too. If you can't change, I can't either. It's as simple as that."

"You know it's not that simple. It's never that simple."

"Well, I'm making it that simple," I said stubbornly.

She blew a stray lock of hair out of her face. "You're impossible."

"How'd you become depressed?" I asked out of the blue.

She looked up at me, surprised. "I…I just did."

"That's not an answer."

Clara sighed. "It started with my best friend. I thought she was the greatest, truest friend ever, and one day she betrayed me. She started using me and hurting me, and one day I finally had enough. I began to ignore here, but she just treated me worse. Then, out of nowhere, she just stops. She starts ignoring me back, and I'm fine with that. But then my other friends start ignoring me as well, and suddenly, I'm all alone. No one really paid attention to me after that, and I felt really lonely and misunderstood and invisible.

"My family didn't make it any better. They ignored me and picked on me. I was miserable and started thinking about…you know. But I refused to give in and tried to go on with life, but it got harder and harder ever day it seemed.

"Trent started bullying me as well. I could barely stand it anymore. I wrote poetry about it and tried to pour all my emotions into them. Venting helped a little, but it wasn't enough.

"Then, you talked to me at the café that night, and everything changed. Suddenly, I had a friend, a real one. I had a reason to live for. I'm not entirely over my depression, but I think I can do it this time. As long as you're by my side to help me, of course." She grinned and nudged my arm.

"Wow." This was one of those moments that didn't need a reply. I thought about her last sentence and knew that I would always stay with her as long as she wanted me to. We could help each other. The concept was almost too much for me to process.

"So, what's your story?" she asked.

"I guess…it really started early. Even when I was young, Adam and Bree would team up against me and tease me and insult me and throw me around, literally. Then, Leo came and gave me the chance to go to school. I was excited at first, but I quickly realized school was more than just learning. There were social groups and unjust people and bullies and everything in between. To make it worse, Adam and Bree started drifting away and even when we would see each other, they were worse than before.

"There was also the stress. I always worried I would get something wrong, and of course my brain came up with every possible scenario. When Trent started bullying me, I became worried and afraid, which wasn't supposed to happen. I mean, I'm the mission leader; I shouldn't be afraid of anything. But everything was just eating away at me.

"Everything only got more complicated when Douglas showed up. It was so confusing. And to add onto it, I looked and sometimes even acted like him. I wasn't trying to, but I was just…being me.

"I don't know. I guess everything started stacking on top of each other: family, school, missions, all of it. Maybe it just became too much for me, and I couldn't handle it anymore. I don't think I'm over my depression either, but I think that us spending time together will really help."

I looked at her, trying to read her unreadable expression. Then, her face broke out in a grin, and she threw her arms around me. I stiffened, surprised, but eventually hugged her back. When we let go, I asked, "What was that for?"

"I don't know. I just…I felt like we needed something to start our new friendship."

I grinned back at her and shook my head, not sure what that meant or what was going through her head right then. "Whatever you say."

She nudged my arm playfully. "You're impossible."

We continued our work like nothing happened. When we were finished, she pulled something out of denim jacket's pocket. It was a folded piece of paper. She unfolded it and wrote something down on it. "Here, read this."

"What is it?" I asked suspiciously.

"You inspired me to write the final stanza of 'Smile.' Read it."

"Okay." I took the paper and read the five lines aloud.

" _Depression leaves_

 _It leaves you after a while_

 _Let it go, release it, and don't let it control you_

 _You just want it to leave you_

 _So, smile and it will_ "

And I did just that.

* * *

 **Dirtkid123: Hello again! Thanks again for the advice. Here's your update!**

 **Guest: Chara, huh? Nice. Thanks. Me too. It's really fun to write and pretty realistic.**

 **Sunwolfee: Hello again! And thanks again. Here's chapter 2/pt. 2 of the prologue. :p**

 **LovelyInspiration: Hello again! Here's some of that poem. Still waiting to get the rest of it. It should be sometime next week. Also, here's chapter 2.**

 **BasketballQueen: Hello again! And hello, Katrine Davis. It's nice to meet you; you seem like a very interesting person. And I don't really blame you. Chase is a cool guy. Thanks.**

 **daphrose: Yeah, I wish I could tell you I didn't know what those "nuances" are, but I've kinda learned from experience. Clara does have a lot of "me" in her. But yeah, thanks for the advice. I'll try to keep things real. And here is more! Thanks.**

 **Guest: Well then... Here you go! Thanks.**


	3. Can't Always Save Everyone

**Think fast! Another update. I'm getting back in the zone for a few days. Welcome to the actual legit chapter 1. This doesn't have any action or anything, mainly just emotions and stuff. It's just one of the short one-shot kind of chapters. This is Chase facing guilt and disappointment and regrets and Clara helping him. Anyway... here you go!**

* * *

Can't Always Save Everyone

The day Abby collapsed was the day I learned she had diabetes.

It was also the day that all of us, including Abby, found out she had cancer.

I had never been close to her before. Our conversations would be brief and to the point, just like they probably should be. But now, of course, I regretted not getting to know her better.

I was pacing on the roof of my family's house. Clara, my best friend, was sitting on a bench we had recently put up there. My mind was ping-ponging back and forth, debating every thought.

"At least you were nice to her and actually talked to her. A lot of the other kids bullied her," one part of his mind said.

"But I should have done more. I should have at least known the fact that she had diabetes," the other side was arguing.

"There's nothing you can do now. The doctors say she won't make it."

"Which is exactly why I should have done something before."

"Let it go, dude. Regret and guilt don't help a situation. There's nothing you can do to change the past. What's done is done."

"But…"

Clara stood, drawing my attention back to reality. "Um…are you okay, Chase?"

I sighed and stopped pacing. "No. I just…I wish I could have known her better."

Even though I didn't specify, she knew exactly who I was talking about. Somehow, she always knew what I was talking about. "I know. But you can't change the fact that she wasn't your close friend. You did all you could."

"No, I could have done more."

"You can always do more. The things you can do to a human being are endless. If you really wanted to be nice to her, you could have asked her out or something. And then, where would you be?"

I didn't reply. I didn't want to.

"Chase, you're going to have regrets in life. Everyone does, even me. But we can't let that bring us down. Yes, we can feel guilty because that's what makes us human. But would Abby want you or anyone else to mope around just because of her?"

"No, I guess not." My tense body slowly relaxed as I let out a long-drawn breath. I sat on the bench, and she sat next to me. "Do you think she's angry with me?"

"Of course not. She loved you. You were sweet and kind and helpful. You were her friend, and sometimes that's enough."

"Then, why doesn't it feel like enough?"

"Because it never does. We can always do more, but we have to live with the fact that we did our best. The past is in the past; we have to put these things behind us. But we always need to remember them." She looked me straight in the eyes, but I couldn't meet her gaze. Her small hand slipped into mine. "You can't always save everyone, Chase." Clara squeezed my hand.

I finally looked up into her dark almost black eyes, smiling back sadly. I squeezed back.

* * *

 **Guest: Glad you're so excited. Here, have another one.**

 **Dirtkid123: You'll just have to find out... Hehe. Thanks, and here you go.**


	4. My Hero

**Ay! Here's the next chapter of feels. This time, roles are reversed, and we see a new side of Clara. And a completely random appearance of the one and only Krane. And a bit of shipping/pairing. Girl power!**

* * *

 _My Hero_

"You know when something bad happens and the hero saves the day while the bystanders run away screaming?" Clara asked me one day while we were walking down the school hallway.

"Yeah, why?" I replied.

"Well, if that ever happens to me, I'm not going to be the one running in fear. I want to save the day for once. The world needs to know that we normal people have the power to save lives too. The super heroes and those people always get all the attention and credit. It's time everyone knew that we're not just helpless creatures. We can do things too."

I just shrugged. Clara often gave inspirational speeches like that at random times. She wasn't really looking for an answer to her words, just agreement.

The bell rang, and Clara's shoulders slumped. "Just as I was getting to the climax," she muttered to herself. "Well, see ya later, Chase."

"See ya!" I called after her.

"When did you start hanging out with _Clara Dale_?" a voice behind me asked. I turned and saw Bree.

I shrugged. "When she started hanging out with me."

"Ooh, Chasey's got a girlfriend," my brother, Adam, chanted, joining us.

"I do not," I retorted. "We're just…friends helping each other."

He was still grinning. "Whatever."

I just rolled my eyes and let him think whatever was going through his head. The three of us went our separate ways as we made our ways to class.

Later that day, Clara was sitting with me at lunch, and I was explaining the whole Krane situation. I still hadn't asked how she had found out about my bionics, but I would at some point. I could tell the matter made her uncomfortable though. Not for the first time, I wondered what she was hiding from me.

"So, he tried to kill you and your family just because he needed to eliminate a threat?"

"Yeah, pretty much."

She looked around. "It's kinda scary that he could just pop in here at any given time. I wonder why he hasn't yet."

"He's probably planning something. Or he's working on something that will destroy us."

She stuck her chin up. "Well, if he does come here, I'm not going to run away with my tail tucked between my legs. I'm going to stand up to him."

"Uh, that may not be a good idea. We can't even beat him, and we're you-know-what."

"So? I could have some kind of advantage. Just because something says it's been improved doesn't mean the old model doesn't have a few things that are better. I'm not useless."

"I know. I just don't want you to get hurt."

"That's sweet and all, but I think I can take care of myself." Her tone was lighter than her words, which meant she wasn't taking offense. She got up with her tray and walked off to dispose of it, leaving me by myself.

* * *

My siblings thought I was a geek. And today, I was kinda agreeing with them.

I was just getting out of chess club. The school hallways were weird when they were empty and silent. But they weren't empty or silent this afternoon.

"Hello, Chase." Krane stood in the middle of the main entrance, his overcoat flowing and the metal parts in his face sparking sporadically.

"Krane, what do you want?" I asked aggressively, lowering myself into a fighting stance.

"I thought I'd try the old tactic: divide and conquer." He yanked the water fountain from the wall and threw it at me with his molecular kinesis.

I jumped out of the way and quickly got back on my feet. He super-speeded to me and punched me in the stomach with his super strength. I flew backward into the lockers. I eventually got back up, but I was winded.

Krane tried to super-speed back to me, but I slid out of the way and walked to the center of the room, next to the circular bench. He slowly came back to the place he was when I first saw him, watching me with every step. We stared at each other, trying to figure out what to do and what the other person would do.

Finally, he raised his arm, and there was an invisible grip around my neck. He was using his molecular kinesis to choke me! I tried to struggle out of the hold, but it was no use. Black dots were already flashing across my vision.

A movement behind Krane caught my attention. Suddenly, a fire extinguisher came up and met the back of his head. His eyes rolled up into his head, and he collapsed. The pressure on my neck disappeared. I fell to the floor, gasping for breath.

Clara stood behind the unconscious Krane, still holding the fire extinguisher. She dropped it, breathing hard, and came over to me. "Are you okay?"

"Fine," I rasped. She helped me stand up. "I must be weak. I can't even save myself half the time."

"You're not weak," she insisted. "You were just caught by surprise. You're lucky I was there."

"But _I'm_ the one who's supposed to save _you_ , not the other way around."

She grinned. "You can't always be the hero, Chase."

I just rolled my eyes. "Whatever." I was starting to sound like Adam.

Suddenly, she started laughing. "What? What's so funny?" I asked.

"I told you I wouldn't run away screaming," she said, still grinning.

* * *

 **Dirtkid123: Don't worry, man. Chase is a fighter. And with Clara by his side, they'll be unstoppable.**

 **daphrose: Yeah, there's always going to be those times where you think you could have done better. But having a friend supporting and comforting you almost always makes things a little more bearable. Thanks.**

 **HawaiianChick12: Thanks. I'm sorry to hear that. I hope you got that fixed or found another solution.**


	5. Chase Junior

**And the ship sails on! A lot of romance in this one. Personally, I think the two of them are super cute, but I'm shamelessly biased. Also, I love writing the two of them bonding and helping each other, especially with me overcoming my own depression. I'm kind of surprised now how accurate I portrayed high school since I wrote this while being in middle school. Then again, I didn't describe high school that much, but oh well. I like to think I did well. There isn't really anything super-duper important plot-wise in this chapter, but it's got a lot of adorable emotions, which is really what this story is about. So...whatever.**

 **Also, if I haven't said this before, I'll send a full copy of the poem "Smile" from the prologue to anyone who PMs me with a request. Thank LovelyInspiration for this idea!**

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

 _Chase Junior_

"I can't believe we're graduating," Clara Dale said.

"Yeah, I wish I could stay a sophomore forever," I replied.

"Have you gotten your schedule for next year yet?"

"Yeah, there are too many classes to decide from. I wish I could pick them all," I complained.

"Can I see it?" I handed it her. "Okay…let's see… Oh! We could have all the same classes together! We could have geometry and health class and history and English and chemistry. Wouldn't that be great?" She sounded so excited. If it wasn't her, I would have half-expected her to start jumping up and down.

"Um…I mean, would that really be the best idea?" I asked, shifting in my seat uncomfortably. We were on the bench on the roof of my house. "Don't you think that the less time we spend, the more special our time together will be?" I was a horrible liar.

"What are you really thinking, Chase?" It was annoying sometimes how she could read my mind.

"I…I don't know. I just…it's so weird. I've never had anyone actually _want_ to be in my class. I've never had a real friend before, and I guess…I don't know. Maybe I just feel like everything's going so fast around me. I just can't keep up." I let out a nervous laugh. That wasn't really why I didn't want to be with Clara every minute of the school day, though it was part of it.

I don't know why, but as soon as I heard the word "chemistry," I started freaking out inside. It was irrational and extremely cheesy, but it felt like things really were going a little too fast for me. I had always loved our friendship, but sometimes my bionic brain betrayed me and started thinking of weird things like how her laugh made the birds sound like screeching cats or how her eyes looked like black abysses that were trying to pull me in. People often mistook us as boyfriend and girlfriend when we hung out, but we would always shake it off. Now though, I was starting to wonder if I was actually falling for her.

I didn't really want a relationship though. First of all, it could ruin our friendship. Second, I was fine with just helping each other as friends. And third, I had no clue whatsoever what Clara would think of anything even vaguely related to the idea. So, for now, friendship was fine. Friendship was good. And she seemed to get the message as well.

She gave me one of those "I know you're lying, but I'll go along with it because I know that it's probably for a good reason" look. "Hey, I get it," she said. "If you think this is going too fast, just tell me. I know where the brake is."

I smiled with relief. "Thank you for understanding. You're the best." I had the strangest urge to hug her, but I stifled it. "I think we should have _some_ classes together, just not all of them. Just in case."

She raised an eyebrow. "Just in case what?"

I shrugged. "I dunno. Maybe we get in a fight or something and don't want to see each other all day long."

She just shook her head, not believing a word I said but trusting me to know what I doing. "Whatever you say, Chase."

* * *

Graduation wasn't anything big or fancy. That was for the seniors. But for me, it was just as special.

The release bell rang, the last one I would hear as a sophomore. People got up from their seats quick as lightning. School was finally over.

I walked out of English class and spotted Clara, who was clutching her red and black notebook and looking around for someone. She finally saw me and ran over. Then, she flung her arms around me.

I was surprised for half-a-second, technically not long enough for the normal human brain to process the hesitation. But after that half-second, I hugged her back, trying to freeze this moment. I wish I never had to let go.

* * *

 **HawaiianChick12: Oh. That's not good. But at least you can still do some things. Yeah, she's pretty cool in my opinion. That's...pretty disturbing. But true! He could do so much more than what the show has him do, but I guess that's because he's not evil and all. But if he was, yeah, we'd all be dead in a minute.**


	6. Glasses

**After a long delay, I return to you with Chara. Some continuous developing feelings, some confusion, some normalcy, some relatable things, some contemplation. All in a day's work. And considering I actually do have glasses, this chapter comes a lot from personal experience. Though...not, at the same time. I don't know. Whatever.**

* * *

 _Glasses_

"Ugh!" The girl slammed the door to her locker.

I eyed her. "What?" I asked cautiously.

"I went to the eye doctor last night, and I have to get _glasses_."

I shrugged. "At least it will help with your whole 'nerdy' look."

Clara glared at me. "Oh really? And what about you, Mr. Valedictorian?"

"My vision is perfect."

"I'm guessing that's because you had a little help." She smirked.

"I guess. I don't know really. I've never thought about it."

The bell rang, and we went to our separate classes. I couldn't get that thought out of my mind though. Would my vision really be perfect if I didn't have my bionics? What exactly did my bionics help with? What would happen if I didn't have them? Who would I be? The questions kept gnawing at me all day.

I voiced them to Clara at lunch. I half-expected her to laugh and think I was joking or say I was overthinking things as usual. But she looked serious. "Chase, dwelling on things like that won't help. Trust me, I've done it before, and all it did for me was give me a migraine. It's good if you're prepared for anything if something like that ever does happen or whatever, but don't let it eat you up."

I nodded. "That seems sensible. Thanks. You always know what to say."

"Well, if I didn't, you probably wouldn't have come to me."

It felt like my face was turning red, and I hoped I wasn't really blushing. I hadn't come to her just for advice. Well, that wasn't the whole reason. The truth was that I liked talking to Clara and just being with her. That shouldn't be weird, but it always felt awkward or something when I thought about wanting to be with her, even as just a friend. I still wasn't sure what my feelings were about her. Everything was just jumbled up inside. And if we ever did go out or anything, it might ruin our friendship, and I couldn't stand it if that happened. We helped each other. That was it. At least, for now.

"So, what do your glasses look like?" I asked, trying to change the subject.

"You'll see." She looked at me slyly.

I sighed. That didn't sound good. At all.

* * *

"Ta-da!"

I turned around. It had been a day since Clara had announced she was getting glasses.

"Do you like them?" She brushed a strand of hair away from her face shyly.

"Uh…yeah. They look great." I didn't know what to say. Clara's glasses were simple enough. They had thick black frames and looked just like the typical 'nerd' glasses.

"Are these 'nerdy' enough for you?"

"Yeah, sure." I was still a bit in shock. She looked exactly like I imagined her in glasses. She actually looked kind of cute in them, kind of…normal.

"Well, I'm going to class. You'd better pick your jaw off the floor and do the same." She grinned and was gone.

I had no idea what to think, what to feel. She had made me, the smartest man on Earth, not able to think straight. She just had that effect on me. I don't know why though.

So, I just shrugged and walked to class, leaving it at that.

* * *

 **Casey Storm: Thank you. I'm trying to keep it as real as possible. With two depressed teenagers and one being a bionic superhuman. Ikr? Love takes time, people.**

 **LovelyInspiration: Fair enough. I totally want them together too (obviously), but I think that with them both being emotionally hurt, they're more likely to take it very slowly and carefully. But they do care for each other; they're just afraid. And yeah, she isn't really into the whole "dating everything under the sun" thing or whatever, and I guess that would be intimidating or at least a reason to pause. I think they're just trying to get the best friends thing under control before they go into a relationship. They both are very similar and have gone through a lot of the same things, which does make them very relatable to each other and compatible. They would probably never stop helping one another, even if they never dated or broke up. They're just too good of friends; they're relationship as people is just too deep. Here it is!**

 **HawaiianChick12: Interesting... I'll think about it.**

 **Dirtkid123: Side of angst coming up soon!**


	7. Graded

**This is just one of my examples of me venting my personal frustrations through my writing. School and teachers sometimes... I'm not usually one for complaining, but I can see where Clara and Chase can relate to my situation in this regard. They are both very intelligent and very high achievers academically. Plus, there's some fluff. Yay!**

* * *

 _Graded_

"How is this even possible?!"

I sighed as I closed my locker. "What is it this time?" I asked with exaggerated exasperation.

"Ms. Karsh gave me a B on my test," Clara Dale replied, clearly frustrated. "I don't get it. I wrote down everything she said and studied an hour three nights in a row for this test. But I still missed four problems. And when I looked over it, they were all right. There is no possible way that this is right."

"Let me see it." She handed it to me. "Uh…well this one is wrong because it's actually the opposite of it." I pointed to the first question marked wrong.

"But this is what she told us was true!" Clara insisted.

I ignored the comment. "And this one is wrong because it wasn't the _best_ answer as the question asks."

"That's what she told us was important! Both of them are pretty much on the same level of importance!"

"This one had the question worded wrong, which is weird." My brow furrowed in confusion.

"That one's not my fault." She shook her head, still irritated.

"And this last one…I don't know what you were thinking."

She explained to me a complicated thought process that no one but us would be able to keep up with. After she was done, I nodded slowly. "I can see what you mean. But you're over obsessing about this stuff. I know it's not your fault, and you know it's not your fault. So, you're still as smart as ever."

"But my grade will drop. This could change everything."

"Clara. Clara, listen to me." I waited until she met my eyes. "Just because you got a bad grade doesn't mean your whole life is going to be different. It doesn't mean you're any less intelligent or anything. You're going to get over this. It will be alright."

She took a deep breath. "I know. I just…I don't like it when other people's mistakes affect me. I don't like it when people give me misinformation. And I really don't like it when something bad happens to me for no reason."

That was it. The thing I had been waiting for. I had known there was another reason she was upset, and this was it.

I had to handle this very carefully. I knew what it felt like telling someone your secret, your inner most thoughts and feelings. They weren't yours anymore. They were out there in the open air. You had to grab them before they faded or someone else did. And then you had to take very special care of them if you didn't want to hurt the person.

I opened my arms and wrapped them around her. She gratefully accepted my embrace. "I understand," I whispered.

"I know you do" was all she said.

* * *

 **LovelyInspiration: Glad you agree. And yeah. You'll just have to keep waiting. I wish there were a lot more people like that around me.**

 **Dirtkid123: Well, this is more of an angry filler chapter, but next chapter is a lot sadder. And I feel you, man. I'm the same way.**

 **HawaiianChick12: Maybe... And bathing is pretty essential to life.**


	8. Relapse

**Snow day! At least, for me it is. And guess what that means? Updates.**

 **Yes, I know. I'm super duper late. I'm just having a really stressful semester so far, especially since it's the beginning few weeks. But that's really not an excuse. I had all of winter break to post, but I didn't. I don't know, guys. I guess I just didn't feel it. But now, I'm back. Hopefully, I'll be a bit better with updates, but I do have a ton of other things on my mind right now. I'm really, truly sorry guys if I ever let you down.**

 **So, this is a pretty emotional chapter. This is very personal to me because it's based on real feelings from my depression. I don't really know what to say in these types of situations. Other than: Treat this chapter gently. Whatever that means, I have no idea.**

 **Also, check out the song "Horrible Kids" by Set It Off. It captures this chapter (and all bullying, really, especially when it comes to Chase) pretty well. At least, as far as I know. I've never really had a personal experience with it, so I'm probably not the best source, and I wouldn't want to sound like I know everything about it and misrepresent the people who have been bullied. What am I even saying anymore?**

 **Anyway, see you 'round. Love ya!**

* * *

 _Relapse_

"Well, well. If it isn't the nerd himself."

I slammed my locker and looked straight at my bully. "Go away, Trent."

He just grinned. "What? Are you going to call your girlfriend for help?"

I felt my face turn red. "She's not my girlfriend," I growled.

"Oh really?" He glanced at the football players around us. "Well, then she won't mind me doing this." He punched me in the stomach.

The momentum of the hit threw me back into the lockers. Everything went black for a moment, but then my vision cleared and I remained conscious. Trent and his buddies sniggered at me. I tried to walk away, but he grabbed my arm.

"Oh no, you're not going anywhere. The party's just getting started."

I wanted to call out to someone, but everyone had already left. There was no one to help me. I was completely alone in this.

That thought struck a chord deep within me, one I had buried a long time ago. I never thought that particular wound would be reopened. But I guess it was to be expected. Some scabs never fully healed.

The beating was worse than most others before. That chord had resonated throughout my whole being and had made me feel vulnerable and small, which resulted in making me feel angry and desperate. So, I had tried to fight back, which didn't end well on my end. Trent's goons had started joining in once I resisted. I was overwhelmed, overpowered, outnumbered. There was no way I could win this.

And so, half-an-hour after the first punch had been thrown, I lie on the floor of the school. There was little blood, but there were a lot of bruises. Trent may have been an ignorant jock, but he was smart enough to know not to leave behind too much evidence in plain sight. No blood on the floor, just pain on my part.

I let my head fall back. I was too tired and weak to keep it up anymore. For several minutes, I listened to the sound of the AC and focused on the rise and fall of my chest as I breathed in pained breaths. Out of nowhere, I heard a new sound. Footsteps.

"Chase!" If I had been standing, I would have collapsed with relief. I knew that voice. I knew it well.

"Chase! Oh wow…are you okay?"

I felt someone kneel next to me. Even though my eyes were closed, I knew it was Clara. She stroked my hair.

For some reason, I felt a tear trickle down my cheek. Soon, I was curled up on my side, sobbing into Clara's lap. That chord had snapped, and it had left an empty hole in my being. That emptiness was so awfully familiar it hurt. I _knew_ this emptiness; I remembered it from buried memories I had tried as hard as possible to forget. But they were still there and would always be. There was no forgetting the agonizing emptiness of depression and loneliness and bitter resentment.

Clara let me cry. She knew how I felt. She didn't say a word, just continued to stroke my hair and wipe a few tears from my face.

She had no idea how _grateful_ I was just for her being there with me.

Or maybe she did. She had known what it was like to be alone and struggling with inner conflict. Maybe she knew _exactly_ how grateful I was.

I lost all sense of time. After a while, my sobbing wound down to the occasional tear. Clara seemed to notice but didn't do anything to show it. When I had finally reached the end of my crying session, she didn't say anything. She just helped me up and took me out to her car. I got in, not wanting to talk either.

As we rode to my house, conversation became necessary though. "I know it was Trent," Clara said, breaking the silence that had settled upon us. "I won't ask what he said or did, but I will ask you to tell me what you felt. It's better to talk about some things, even if it doesn't seem like it." She glanced over at me. "It makes you _know_ that someone out there is willing to listen to you, to hear you out, to be there for you."

I closed my eyes. This is exactly what I didn't want to hear, but it was exactly what I probably _needed_ to hear. I had to talk about this I had to talk about this I had to talk about this. I repeated this over and over in my head, trying to convince myself it was true. I had never really talked about my feelings before. Even that confession to Clara when I first got to know her had been more of a general thing, not very detailed.

I opened my eyes again. I was ready. I had to be ready. My mouth opened, and the words spilled out of their own accord.

"I think I had a relapse."

That was it. Just six words. But everything I had been through in the last hour or so could be summed up as that. Of course, it could be put into more detail, but I knew Clara would understand what I meant. She always did.

Suddenly, she stopped the car and pulled it over to the side of the road. At first, she just stared ahead, and a thread of worry went through me. Was she okay? But then, she threw her arms around me. I was shocked for a moment then melted into her embrace.

"Chase," she whispered into my ear, which my super-hearing had no trouble picking up.

"What?" I mumbled back.

"Stay strong. Don't give in. I'm sorry about any wrong I have done to you and any wrong any other person has done to you. I know it's hard, and you may feel like giving up now, but don't. It will get worse before it gets better, but it _will_ get better. I'll be here to make sure it does."

We broke apart. This time, it was my turn to say, "I know."

* * *

 **Dirtkid123: Thanks. Sorry I'm late. Here it is anyway.**


	9. Injury Time

**Hello, everyone! I'm feeling quite generous with updates right now, so here we go. This is more of the "torturing Chasey physically" instead of "torturing Chasey mentally" like last chapter. I don't know why I like this kind of thing. It's rather contradictory. Speaking of last chapter, thanks for the support. I really felt like I was opening up a bit, and you guys seemed very kind.**

 **So we've still got a long way to go with this story. Let's get back on the tracks.**

* * *

 _Injury Time_

"Hold on, Chase! Just stay with me! They're on their way. Only a few more minutes. Come on. You can do it. I believe in you." Clara's voice was the only thing I could hear. It was getting harder to breathe.

I heard a car pull up, the door slamming, footsteps. "Clara! What happened?" That sounded like Mr. Davenport.

"I…I… He was just trying to protect me. I should have been more careful." I could hear her sobbing.

"Get him in the car, Adam."

I was being lifted up in the air. Someone set me down. "Oh, Chase…" Now, it was Bree's voice. "Just hang on. We're taking you to one of Mr. Davenport's secret hospitals. They'll take care of you there."

My mind felt hazy, disconnected. I wasn't really in control of my thoughts. If my eyes weren't closed right now, I bet my vision would be blurred and unfocused as well.

"Clara…" I heard someone whisper. It took me a second to realize that it was me. I thought I heard her voice in the distance somewhere, but all the noises were fading. I felt my arm go limp and smack into something, but I felt no pain. I felt nothing.

* * *

I wasn't dreaming. What was happening couldn't be described as a dream. No, it was more like…a memory, a flashback of some sort.

I was at the party I had been at earlier that night with Clara. Neither of us really wanted to go, but Mr. Davenport said we needed to be more "social." He said if we didn't go, he wouldn't let me read my chemistry book I had got. I wish I would have just refused.

The party was loud. And bright. And crazy. It was awful. We were having absolutely zero fun there and decided to leave early. That was our first mistake.

Our second one was taking the long way home. We walked through the streets, enjoying the night. After a while, we sat on a sidewalk bench and talked about random things. Then, a man came up to us and asked us for money.

I recognized him after a while. He was homeless and often on the streets of Mission Creek. Some people said he was crazy. Some said he was just in grief over the loss of his wife a few months back. I said it was probably a mixture of both.

We politely told him we didn't have any money, which was true, and tried to get up to leave. But out of nowhere, he pulled a gun out of his jacket pocket and pointed it at us. I instinctively stepped in front of Clara, my hands held up in a gesture of surrender and peace.

"Whoa, we don't want any trouble, dude," I told him. "If you want money, I can go home and get some if that's what you really want."

"I don't want your money," he growled.

I was puzzled by this contradiction, but I didn't have much time to be confused. Suddenly, he fired, aiming straight at Clara's head.

I didn't think. I pushed Clara back and jumped in front of her. I was slightly taller than her, so it hit my shoulder instead. I collapsed to the ground. I still remembered the pain I felt. Everything was on fire, burning so hot I could have sworn someone had set my shoulder ablaze.

I watched as Clara dropped to her knees next to me. The man walked away, his face full of surprise, as if he hadn't expected him to do that either. I strode over to my dream self, watching in a combination of morbid fascination and horror as I bled out on the sidewalk.

Clara was talking to me, but I wasn't paying attention anymore. She pulled out a phone and spoke into it. A few minutes later, Mr. Davenport, Adam, and Bree pulled up in a car. The sheer terror on their faces was enough to send a sliver of fear through me. Surely if they were this scared, this was a serious matter.

Adam picked me up and placed me in the car. I followed them, too interested to look away. My eyes were closed, but I could still see the faint rise and fall of my chest. Subtly, my lips moved. Even though I couldn't really read them that well, I knew what I had said. I was whispering Clara's name.

Mr. Davenport started driving. Adam was riding shotgun. I was sprawled across the backseat, with Bree at my feet and my head resting in Clara's lap. Luckily, Leo wasn't there or he would have fainted from the sight of all the blood.

I closed my eyes, trying to get rid of the image of my unconscious form in the back of the car. When I tried to open them though, they wouldn't. I only had time to realize I was waking up before everything dissolved into a hazy darkness.

* * *

My eyes were fluttering, not quite open yet. I could sense a light from behind my heavy lids. There was something soft and warm covering me. It took me a second to recognize it as a thin sheet. I was lying on some table or bed or something. There were people standing around me; I could sense their presence. I remembered Bree telling me something about Mr. Davenport's secret hospital and inferred that's where I was now.

Muffled words were floating in and out of my semiconscious brain. I concentrated hard on what they were saying.

"…increased brain activity…"

"…he's waking up…"

"…if he's going to do it, he'd better do it now…"

"…going into surgery soon…"

"Mr. Davenport, get in here!"

The last one I heard loud and clear, as if it was right next to my ear. There were sounds of scuffling, footsteps and repositioning. "Chase, can you hear me?" I knew that was Mr. Davenport's voice.

"Mr. …Mr. Davenport…" I suddenly remembered it was extremely hard to breathe.

"Chase? Chase, just hold on. They're going to operate on you, and you're going to be fine. Just stay with me. Only a little while longer, okay? Chase, can you hear me? Talk to me."

I felt him slip his hand in mine. It was rough and callused from years of tinkering and working. This was probably one of the most loving gestures he had ever shown toward me. I squeezed his hand weakly.

He squeezed back, and I could see in my mind's eye the smile that was lighting up his face. Then, he let go and was gone.

"Chase, if you can still here us, we're going to put you under, okay?" a voice I assumed came from a doctor said.

I didn't reply. Soon, everything dissolved into darkness. And I didn't have any dreams or memories this time.

* * *

 **Dirtkid123: I'm really glad I could help in any way. I hope for the best for you. Well you could say that... Maybe. I guess a little bit in this chapter. But not really.**

 **Guest: Thank you. Glad you liked it.**


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